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Who is Jack Mewhort??

With the 59th pick in the 2014 NFL Draft, the Indianapolis Colts select Jack Mewhort; offensive tackle, Ohio State University. These are the words that flowed from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell’s mouth last night as the Colts selected for the first time in this year’s NFL Draft.

I have to admit, I was in shock and a little upset with the selection. So many high end players had slipped down to the Colts. Guys like Louis Nix, Pierre Desir, Marcus Martin, Kony Ealy and others were there for the taking. But, Colts GM Ryan Grigson chose to take Mewhort. My first question was: WHY?!?! After doing some research on him and watching some film I think I have answered many of our questions.

Mewhort stands at 6’6 and 310 pounds. He is a massive man with great ability. Mewhort has strength to give away to his fellow teammates. He is strong as an ox and knows how to use that to his advantage. He was the blind side protector for Braxton Miller last season and kept him clean for the most part. He was a two-time team captain and anchored the offensive line at Ohio State as the offense ran over people all season long. Mewhort was named to the All-American team and participated in the Senior Bowl where he opened the eyes of a few scouts. Obviously he caught the attention of the Colts scouts.

Now, there’s a lot of upside to Mewhort; but there’s always a downside right? Well, if you think he is Superman then you’re mistaken. With all his strength he tends to rely on that more than his technique at times. This allows him to get embarrassed by blitzing linebackers and powerful defensive ends. His feet aren’t the fastest and he doesn’t move his hips very well, which would allow him to get in front of those quick linebackers and keep his quarterback upright. He has also has the tendency to stand up while pass blocking which allows smaller, powerful defensive players to get under his pads and drive him backwards. Anyone who has played offensive line at any level and is 6’5 and over are taught to keep a good bend in the knees and never allow the defender to get hands on you first. There are times that Mewhort doesn’t do either of these.

I watched film on him during the Orange Bowl this past season and he had some really good moments of driving defenders to the ground or completely taking them out of the equation some other way. However, there were times when his deficiencies showed big time. When attempting to block defensive end Vic Beasley from Clemson, Mewhort got embarrassed on multiple occasions and gave up at least two sacks to Beasley. This was due to him standing up or not having quick enough feet. Also, Beasley was able to get hands on Mewhort sooner than Mewhort was able to get his hands up. He was driven back into the pocket on several occasions. When Mewhort was asked to clear the road for Carlos Hyde though, he did just that. He cleared out linebackers and defensive lineman like they were paper weights.

Also watched a little film of the OSU vs. Buffalo game where Mewhort was lined up against highly coveted top 10 pick Khalil Mack. During the film I watched, Mewhort held his own fairly well winning most of the battles when Mack would line up across from him.

Jack Mewhort can play four of the five offensive line spots. Center isn’t one that he has a ton of experience in. He will more than likely be a guard here in Indy as he should be able to handle powerful defensive linemen for the most part. It’s also possible that he could compete with Holmes at the center spot. I look at it this way: if he can play both guard and tackle positions then he is intelligent enough to play center effectively with enough practice. Time will tell what Grigson had on his mind when he chose Mewhort and I truly do hope that this pick works out for the best because many around Colts Nation are not happy with the selections. However, I am here to say that Mewhort has a lot of upsides, so don’t sell him short just yet.